In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. "How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!" Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. (John 3:3-6, NIV)
The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Cor 2:14, NIV)
The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?" He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak to them in parables: "Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: " 'You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.'But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. (Mat 13:10-17, NIV)
Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." (Mat 16:23, NIV)
Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. (Romans 8:5-8, NIV)
But it is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding. (Job 32:8, NIV).Teach me, O LORD, to follow your decrees; then I will keep them to the end. Give me understanding, and I will keep your law and obey it with all my heart. Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight. Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain. Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word.Fulfill your promise to your servant, so that you may be feared (Psalm 119:33-38; NIV).A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD - and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears. (Isaiah 11:1-3; NIV).Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. (Luk 24:45; NIV).Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this. (2Tim 2:7; NIV)
The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran. (Gen 12:1-4; NIV).And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. (Acts 20:22-23; NIV).Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. (Romans 6:16-17; NIV)
- Study your Bible when you are at your best – when you’re mentally sharp and undisturbed. (Exo 22:29)
- Approach the bible like a child, not to prove a point or using worldly wisdom. (Prov 3:5; Mat 18:3)
- Strive for balance. Read in context and allow the scriptures to interpret themselves.
- Get breadth by reading through the whole bible regularly. You might go from front to back or chronologically or break it into pieces so that you get some OT and some NT and some poetry each day. Don’t get stuck on the parts you don’t understand but read for the big picture. Do this every day.
- Get depth by picking a book and studying it deeply. Follow all the cross-references and read related material like commentaries and study notes. Do this every day.
- Occasionally you may want to do special topical studies or word studies to deepen your understanding.
- In the beginning – Genesis
- The answers at the end of the book – Revelation
- A small book you can wrap your head around – Jude, 2nd or 3rd John,
- Stories about what Jesus did (Mark) or said (John)
- A book with a lot of action – Acts
- An amazing prophecy – Daniel
- Koinonia House Ministries http://www.k-house.org/.
- John MacArthur http://www.gty.org/resources.php?section=articles&aid=231240
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